Politics is Personal……In Wilmington, Ohio

You probably remember hearing of this southwestern Ohio town a few years ago: a major employer DHL US Express was closing its transportation hub, causing a loss of 7,000 jobs. The community was cast into the spotlight by the media as an example of devastation wreaked by the loss of jobs in a faltering economy at the time. It was featured on an episode of 60 Minutes. Even Glen Beck got into the act…but I digress.

Wilmington's mayor is a man of great personal and business experience, and has shown his varied political leadership skills. Whether heading up departments, developing programs and laboratories at Clinton Memorial Hospital over the years, or leadership on the many boards and civic programs in which he has served, the mayor obviously is a man to be reckoned with. He has served the community also as an EMT and firefighter, and has been duly recognized for all his accomplishments. He was once even awarded the Civic Leader of the year. He is a well-known figure, counting business owners and administrators as his friends, such as those in banking and mortgage fields.

A woman began working for a mortgage bank in Wilmington about a year ago. She had twenty-five years of experience, progressing in her field, and traveling across the country setting up offices, training new hires, and reorganizing branches for such companies as Norwest Mortgage, PNC, Wells Fargo and Bank of America among others. She was a supervisor, a division head, a vice president.  She interviewed, evaluated, and worked with employees to make sure all company goals were met in a timely and accurate manner, and taking action to correct any problems.  Just a couple weeks ago she received her own employment evaluation. There was nothing but praise for her accomplishments…the fact that she had turned her division around "360 degrees," meeting and exceeding all that was expected of her. The company was very pleased with her work. She received a raise, and a bonus as well.

Imagine how she felt last Friday as she was called in and summarily relieved of her duties. In the thinly veiled, grasping for "gotcha" reasons, one thing was blindingly clear: in the course of her completing her job as required…she  recently had to terminate the mayor's daughter.

In the words of FAUX news: We report. You decide. 

IN THE HALLOWEEN SPIRIT

Boo!! This is the weekend for trick or treat, costumes, ghosts, and scary beings. It's weird enough that Pat Robertson is going off today on the origins of halloween, demons, devil worshipping, bad for kids and all that. And on CNN I read a column about some group that is SURE that candy being given out to kids is cursed, "blessed" by witches, and they spin a tale that would make Stephen King envious. But the scariest thing I can think of is Glen Beck. Glen Beck doesn't just come out on halloween: he's around all the the time. If you've got the stomach or heart to watch.

I know, there's a big hullaballoo going on because a certain network can't seem to come to grips that "their party" didn't quite make it in the last election. I'm not sure if it should be causing as much a stir as it is now, but it's not unprecedented. Former administrations had the same go-rounds with the media, which with today's selective memory, they seem to have forgotten. With the invention of taping and digital recording, it's very easy to "recall" these incidents. Not sure that the administration or advisors should have taken a stance, but fair is fair. (But not Fair and Balanced.) I won't even go into the "characters" going to the Tea Parties.........but I digress.

Glen Beck surely can't take himself seriously. His viewers can't seriously believe this man represents the majority mindset or intelligence today. He can take the most far out nonsense, make faces, use funny (?) voices, use disputed facts and debunked theories, draw pictures, quote scriptures, and cry within two minutes time. He makes Rush Limbaugh seem like a Franciscan monk. (Ok, that's a stretch.) Don't they have medication for that?? He scares the heck out of me! And he doesn't wear a costume!

He's a money maker for the network, even though sponsors are getting very leery about his carryings on. Would you want your goods or services associated with that mess? What really scares me is that people ---his fans-- think he's godlike, tells it like it is, spouting the TRUTH about all the behind the scenes "conspiracies" in our government, all the freedoms in the Constitution being taken away. He loves his country: I guess he just lets the rest of us malcontents live here. (You can buy his new book, of course.) Add in Michelle Malkin, Ann Coulter, Alex Castelanos, Neil Cavuto with encouragement from Mr. Murdoch and you've got a witch's brew to be proud of. A pot ready to boil over at any minute. And Glen beck is the master chef.

Where is Emeril Lagasse when you need him??